OKSSU stands victorious Thursday, September 3, 2020
After months of work, OK State Stand United will finally see change thanks to the List of Urgencies
Oklahoma State Stand United met with OSU President Burns Hargis on Monday August 31, 2020 at his office in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
By Ishani Ray The ongoing conversations between OSU President Burns Hargis and OKState Stand United reached a conclusion on Monday evening, as Hargis agreed to work to resolve the issues presented in The List of Urgencies.
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The List of Urgencies, which was drafted by five OSU student activists and co-founders of OKSSU, is a document that addresses several areas of concern for minority students. It is a petition which suggests several reforms, aimed to make OSU the diverse and inclusive institution it strives to be. The 11 points established in the list are accompanied by numerous proposed policy solutions. The proposed measures include intensive diversity and racial-bias education for faculty and students, increased institutional support services, and funding and development opportunities for minorities. The petition also calls for more diverse hiring practices, a substantial multicultural center, and increased transparency for the university’s diversity efforts. The meeting went on for an estimated hour and a half and was the organizers’ first opportunity to sit down with President Hargis and talk through the list of urgencies, said Sean Tolbert, OSU senior and OKSSU co-organizer. Following the meeting President Hargis released a statement declared his commitment to collaborate with OKSSU and other OSU students, faculty, and staff to advance racial equity and inclusivity in the OSU community. It announced that a Diversity and Inclusion Plan that tackles the List of Urgencies will be devised by the end of the 2021 Spring semester and implemented in the following years. The plan will establish specific, timed, and measurable goals, according to the email. When asked about whether the assigned time frame for the conception of the diversity plan seemed reasonable, Tolbert said it is precisely what the organizers wanted. “We want to work with the university’s administration to set the amount of time needed to create a meaningful diversity plan that is really going to impact people’s lives and change the way that minority students succeed on this campus,” Tolbert said. Continued on page 2
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